Examples from Prijedor show that Srpska is right

The president of the Democratic People’s Alliance /DNS/, Marko Pavic, said today that examples from Prijedor show that Republika Srpska representatives are right when it comes to the conflict of the Entities in connection with the question as to which persons should be registered and recognized as permanent residents of BiH.“There are areas which are majority Bosniak areas. There are 28 residents more in Kamicani than in 1991, there are seven more in Hrnici and there are 773 more in Kozarac now than in 1991,” Pavic said at a press conference.

Pavic, who is the mayor of Prijedor, said that everyone in Prijedor knows that there are no more residents in Kozarac, Kamicani and Hrnici now than there were in 1991, but that the 2013 population census shows differently.

“If this is true, all stories of persecution are false. I think that no one should delude anyone. I, as the mayor, would like that Prijedor has as many residents as possible, but I would also like to know the exact number,” Pavic said.

He said that the exact number of residents is important because of the economic policy measures which must be implemented.

“There were 4,045 residents in Kozarac in 1991, and there were 4,818 residents in 2013. This is impossible, and everyone who passed through Kozarac knows that this is not true, that the statistics want to persuade us in something that does not exist in the field,” Pavic said.

He says that the reform agenda is the issue No.1 in BiH and not the results of the population census, but that the agenda cannot be adopted before the results of the population census are published.

“Ethnic affiliation cannot be a foundation for employment or for anything else. Nothing will be determined on the basis of ethnic affiliation,” Pavic said.

He expects that the issue of the population census will be resolved as soon as possible so that other parts of the agenda would not be called into the question.

Pavic said that the population census has the economic and not political character since the number of residents should be known for everything that is planned, such as production and GDP, and since BiH does not have results of the population census, it cannot present all data that are recognised in Europe.

“We could not do it since even the 1991 population census has never been adopted,” Pavic said.

The Srpska Times is the first English language magazine originating from Republika Srpska with the aim, priority and objective of reporting timely, verified and accurate information on the current events, processes and attitudes (official and public opinion) in Republika Srpska